Israeli Forces Have Killed Four Young Palestinians in Five Days

The new year can be a significant time for many: of change, of resolve, of recognizing where one fell short and where they could grow. But apparently not for Israel. Israeli forces have now killed four young Palestinians in 2023; in other words, almost as many Palestinians dead as there have been days in the new year.

On Thursday, Israeli forces shot 16-year-old Amer Abu Zaytoon during a raid on Nablus in the West Bank. According to journalist Bakr Abdelhaq, residents said Abu Zaytoon was shot while walking in a refugee camp raided by the forces.

“There were armed clashes. They besieged the home of former prisoner Hassan Araysheh and then proceeded to raid it and beat family members inside, before arresting him,” Abdelhaq told Al Jazeera.

On Tuesday morning, Israeli forces killed 15-year-old Adam Issam Shaker Ayyad during a raid on Bethlehem, in the southern West Bank. Ayyad was the victim of yet another Israeli raid on a refugee camp; the young boy apparently studied at a U.N.-funded school in the Dheisheh camp.

On Monday morning, Israeli forces killed two more young men in a raid in the town of Kufr Dan: Mohammad Samer Hoshiyeh, 22, and Fouad Mohammad Abed, 25. At least three others were injured in the raid, including one in critical condition.

These four young Palestinians are only part of the ongoing violence Palestinains face; headline statistics don’t always include the thousands injured or the masses of demolished homes.

Last year, Israeli forces killed at least 171 Palestinians in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, making it the deadliest year since the U.N. began tracking. The rate so far in 2023 outpaces that.

And without further global pressure on Israel’s insistent campaign against Palestinian people, there looks to be no slowing down for their seemingly hardened resolve. The most far-right Israeli government ever has just been sworn in. A coalition led by Benjamin Netanyahu, the fifth government in four years boasts ministers like new National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who has been convicted in the past for inciting racism and support for a terrorist group, and new Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a self-proclaimed “proud homophobe” who has advocated a “shoot to kill” approach when dealing with Palestinian children throwing stones.

In a sign that Republicans are definitely taking this whole thing seriously, Matt Gaetz threw everyone a curveball and voted for Donald Trump for House speaker on Thursday.

During the seventh vote, which speaker hopeful Kevin McCarthy had already lost, Gaetz called out a vote for “Donald John Trump.” Trump, for the record, still backs McCarthy, was never nominated for House speaker, and doesn’t have a serious chance of winning. Gaetz was the only one to vote for him.

Gaetz is one of 19 Republicans who have remained staunchly anti-McCarthy, although they previously were united behind a challenger candidate, first Jim Jordan and then Byron Donalds.

Gaetz has previously floated the idea of Speaker Trump. If he and his party did agree to vote Trump into speakership, the move would be incredibly unprecedented but not technically forbidden. If he became speaker, one major concern is that Trump would have outsize influence on what legislation comes to the floor.

Legislative power has become fairly centralized in the House speaker, and a Speaker Trump could decide whether bills to keep the government open or raise the debt ceiling ever reach debate.

Fortunately, Gaetz seems alone in his sudden renewed conviction to hand Trump the gavel, with the rest of the House voting for McCarthy, Donald, or Hakeem Jeffries—who has consistently won the most votes every time.

No.

This post has been updated.

CVS and Walgreens, two of the biggest U.S. pharmacy chains, say they plan to offer abortion pills after a rule change this week from the Food and Drug Administration.

The FDA announced Tuesday that it would allow retail pharmacies to dispense mifepristone, one of the medications used to induce abortions, for the first time in the United States. Unfortunately, pharmacies in states that have banned abortion since the Supreme Court rolled back the nationwide right to the procedure will not be able to sell the drug.

Pharmacies must first apply for certification from one of the two companies that makes mifepristone. Once they are certified, pharmacists can dispense the drug to anyone who has a prescription.

CVS and Walgreens said Wednesday they were both seeking certification, although they did not specify when they would be able to start dispensing mifepristone. Rite Aid said it was looking into FDA action.

Many reproductive health care experts noted, though, that the FDA rule change is not as big a win as it is being marketed.

Greer Donley, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, pointed out that the certification process is complicated enough that it could turn some pharmacies off. What’s more, there are still multiple barriers to accessing abortion pills, which are highly regulated.

Hayley McMahon, a reproductive health researcher, said that while it’s “significant” that the pharmacy chains have committed to seeking certification, it remains to be seen how much the new FDA rule will affect abortion access.

“This is a step in the right direction, but I do want people to understand that pharmacy certification is still a blatantly unnecessary restriction that is not supported by evidence,” she told The New Republic, referring to the FDA’s decision to continue classifying mifepristone as a high-risk drug, despite no data backing that up.

The second drug needed to complete a medication abortion, misoprostol, is not restricted under the FDA’s high-risk regulation and is already available at retail pharmacies. Anyone prescribed abortion pills will be able to get both medications at any pharmacy certified to dispense mifepristone.

Abortion pills are seen as a key resource in the fight for reproductive rights because they are easier to access than surgical abortions.

Medication abortion currently accounts for more than half of all abortions in the United States, according to the Guttmacher Institute. The pills were already available at reproductive health clinics, from medical care providers, and from mail-order pharmacies. In the two months immediately following the Supreme Court decision, there was also a surge of orders for abortion pills from overseas.

This post has been updated.

On Thursday morning, Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow announced that she will not seek reelection in 2024. “Inspired by a new generation of leaders, I have decided to pass the torch in the U.S. Senate,” Stabenow said in a statement.

While many congressional announcements can feel full of filler materials, statements like these warrant closer attention at every line. And as Democrats will now have to protect yet another seat in an exceedingly difficult Senate map, the question of who may earn the bid to do so is already buzzing.

Stabenow highlighted how she was the first woman from Michigan elected to the Senate, among other milestones. But, Stabenow continued, “I have always believed it’s not enough to be the ‘first’ unless there is a ‘second’ and a ‘third.’” This may give a clue as to who Stabenow may support among an already wide potential field of candidates.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer led a commanding reelection in November, on the same scale that led the media to fawn over Florida’s Ron DeSantis. Such a performance may be an antecedent to a presidential run, but Biden’s future decision, among other things, could readily skew that calculus. If so, a Whitmer bid for the Senate (especially one blessed by Stabenow) would be formidable.

Former Representative Andy Levin could also lead a strong candidacy. Levin, who is Jewish, was a target of inordinate spending from AIPAC—which has funded scores of conservative and election-denying candidates—in his primary loss to Haley Stevens in 2022. Previously endorsed by Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, J Street, and an array of unions, Levin offers progressives a unifying vessel to rally behind in a state hospitable for a strong Democratic performance.

Other rising Democratic stars in Michigan include: Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist (who would be Michigan’s first Black senator), Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (who won a crucial reelection in 2022), and Attorney General Dana Nessel (the first openly LGBT person elected statewide).

And then there is Pete Buttigieg. After catapulting from mayor of a town with a smaller population than Fargo, North Dakota, to momentarily well-known presidential candidate, to now being the face of transportation while millions of people get skeeved by big airlines, Mayor Pete had moved to Michigan earlier this year to apparently be closer to family.

But as 2024 approaches—and his boss may run for reelection—it seems Buttiegeig may have high hopes to carpetbag himself into winning a seat against a wide, strong field of candidates actually from the state.